Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Election Day/All Souls' Day/Soup Day

Today, on All Souls' Day, I remember my dad, whose favorite holiday next to Thanksgiving and Christmas was Election Day. From getting donuts early in the morning for his precinct workers to driving little old ladies to the polls to spending the evening down at the courthouse waiting for results, the whole day was one great adventure.

How I wish I could talk politics with dad again. I would love to know his take on our President, Sarah Palin, Nancy Pelosi and the Tea Party. While I think I know what he would say, he studied the issues carefully; sometimes he surprised me with his views, although he would never admit to voting anything but a straight Republican ticket! So, today I am thankful for the privilege of voting, and for a dad who taught me how important it is.

Politics and elections are not such peaceful pursuits; therefore, on this All Souls' Day, I'm going to share this instead -- a quote from one of my favorite books, Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh:

...I want first of all...to be at peace with myself. I want a singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out these obligations and activities as well as I can. I want, in fact - to borrow from the language of the saints - to live "in grace" as much of the time as possible...By grace I mean an inner harmony, essentially spiritual, which can be translated into outward harmony...I would like to achieve a state of inner spiritual grace from which I could function and give as I was meant to in the eye of God...

Purity of intention. Outward harmony. Isn't that nice?

Saint of the Day: St. Thomas More, who was named Patron Saint of Politicians by JPII in 2000. When I was in middle school, I became obsessed with English history, especially Henry VIII. (Maybe it was that Herman's Hermits song I'm Henery the Eighth, I am . . . . or going to see Vanessa Redgrave's Mary Queen of Scots with my cousins.) Thomas honored his king, but not his king's plan to claim supremacy over God. Off with his head.

And finally, soup. Clay picked up our Market Day order yesterday, put it in the freezer and texted me that we have to eat a lot of broccoli and chicken before we order from MD again. So, here is my solution, and soup recipe for the day:

In a soup pot, saute the onion and garlic until tender. Add the broccoli and chicken stock (and water to cover, if necessary); bring to a boil and reduce heat until broccoli is tender. Using a hand held blender, smoosh up the broccoli as much as you like. (Alternately, transfer soup to a regular blender and whoosh it up. Only do about 1/2 a blender full at a time. Ask me how I know this.) Stir in milk and rice and heat until just warmed through. Serve with shredded cheese (cheddar is good, Swiss is excellent!)